We hit the dirt hard, rolling down a small hill tangled together, until we came to a rough stop at the bottom, right at the base of the forest's tree line. I scrambled to my feet, launching a fist full of air towards the wolf, but it was too low, and dodged entirely. It launched up at me, teeth bared, just as I managed to get a shield up in front of me, my arms and hands splayed out in front of me. It snapped and growled, clawing and biting at the shield, but my energy didn't budge. I waited for a safe moment, and when it bit out, I pushed the shield forward, sending it slamming into the wolf's body and launching it back. I followed through with a wave of fire, sending it straight to the wolf and watching as it burnt the fur and flesh of its body. It whimpered and howled, but still it came at me, not wanting to quit until it tasted my blood. It jumped up quickly, teeth coming down, and sank its fangs into my forearm. I screamed in pain, throwing my body forward to throw it off. A wall of air threw itself forward from my body, slamming into the wolf and forcing it to loosen its grip on my arm. I stumbled backward, clutching my arm as blood poured from the wound, but I kept my eyes focused on my enemy, not letting myself slip up. I waited, timing my attack. It leapt forward again, but I was ready, and as it lifted its hind legs off the ground, I ducked and threw my fist out and let a sharp flash of light escape from my arm. It sliced open the body of the wolf as it soared above me, showering me in its blood and innards. I swallowed the disgust rising in my throat, pushing myself up and immediately starting my trek up the small hill. I made it to the top, feeling anger rising in my body so much that it almost felt like my body was sizzling, releasing heat and smoke. I stalked forward slowly, seeing Anthony and James on the ground rolling around and wrestling, and I clenched my teeth.
"James," I snapped. He sensed the authority in my voice and immediately shoved himself off Anthony, scrambling to his feet with his eyes wide as he watched me approach. Anthony had lifted himself up, too, and was just about ready to attack again, until I threw my arm forward and let a stream of fire shoot out and douse him completely. I cut the stream off quickly, hearing him scream as I continued to approach, but I didn't let him off easy. I grabbed a blade from the ground with the energy coming from my body, guiding it over to us with my arm waving through the air. I straightened my arm quickly, the blade shooting over and driving itself straight into Anthony's chest. He gasped, clutching at the blade as he began to choke on blood, but I still didn't stop. I slowed my steps down as I lifted both my hands up, lowering them with my palms down to press the air down on Anthony, forcing him lower and lower until he was lying flat on the ground, gasping for a breath.
I didn't give him the satisfaction of a speech. I nodded at my mate, and seconds later, a blade was running across his throat, blood spilling from the opening and pouring out, all over the man's shirt and staining the dirt. He didn't last long after that; as soon as I saw the light leave his eyes, I released the pressure I was laying down on him and took a quick, sudden breath, feeling the sudden urge to cry.
"Rhea, are you alright?" James asked, but his voice was merely an echo in my ears as I stared down at the bleeding corpse before my feet. It was over. It was finally over. I would never have to fear for my family's lives again.
I blinked up at James as he grabbed onto my shoulders, shaking me into awareness.
"Where did this blood come from?" he demanded. "Is it yours?"
I shook my head, smiling faintly. "Sorry, my love," I replied quietly, looking down at my arms. I was covered completely and entirely in blood; it was soaked through my hair and had completely stained my face. I was barely recognizable. "I'm okay. It only got my arm; the rest of it belongs to the wolf." He inspected my arm, frowning at the deepness of the wound, but knowing it was only minor compared to what it could have been, so he let it go.
"I love you," I announced quickly, and he looked back at me, blinking for a few moments before a faint smile found its way onto his lips as well.
"I love you too," he assured me. "And I'm so proud of you."
My smile widened as I spared one last glance at Anthony before I clasped my hand into my mate's and began our long trudge back to the castle. I was limping by the time we got there, which I thought was weird because I didn't even remember where my leg got injured.
When we arrived in the throne room, we found most of our people were gathered around, either sitting around each other murmuring or standing and looking nervous. When they saw us, their shock levels escalated so much I actually heard a few loud gasps and a couple of shrieks. It took me a moment to remember I was completely covered in blood, by which time my eyes had widened and my hands were held up in front of me.
"It's okay, I'm fine," I announced quickly, glancing at James with a wince. "Everything's okay. It's someone else's blood."
"Is it over?" someone asked from the middle of the group.
"Did you defeat Anthony?" someone else called from the front.
"We did," James replied with a smile, and the sheer joy that erupted in the throne room was enough to make anyone smile and laugh in joy. Terk, Emil and Violet all walked up from outside the castle, while Soren approached from the cellars.
"The rest of our people are still down there," Soren explained, gesturing to the cellar doors. "Those brave enough waited in here, so they would be able to wait comfortably."
"They had no doubts," Terk jumped in with a grin on his face as he tucked his bow away on his back. "None of us did. You should have seen her, Soren! She totally crisped him up! Again!"
"You should have seen yourself, Rhea," Violet said with a laugh. "You were literally smoking; you looked like you were just about glowing red before you torched him."
"Really?" I asked, eyes wide and blinking.
"It was kind of scary," Emil admitted, "considering we didn't know if you were about to literally explode or not, but you did good. Well done," he added, clapping me on the shoulder with a smile of respect.
"She did exceptional," Soren confirmed, his arms crossed across his chest as he nodded at me. "She didn't need me there at all; you should have seen Anthony's face when she used her magic after he destroyed the gemstone."
"He destroyed it?" James asked quickly, his eyes snapping onto mine. I shrugged, giving him a sheepish smile.
"I'm special; I don't need a gemstone to control my magic," I explained. "I'm a Midnight, remember? I was born with this power. I never needed the gemstone."
"That reminds me," James murmured, leaving me frowning as he stepped forward to face the crowds. More people were filtering out of the cellar at the sound of the good news, but everyone's voices ceased as James stood before them.
"I want to announce a few changes," he called, his voice booming through the room. "We have defeated Anthony, and it is Rhea Riverwood you have to thank for that. Some of you will have seen her out in the battle, so I would like to give you the truth." He turned to me, holding his hand out and nodding. I hesitated, but stepped forward, taking his hand as I tried to smooth my blood-stained hair down at the same time. I cleared my throat awkwardly.
"I am the last known survivor of the Midnight pack." Everyone gasped and started speaking at once, but with one movement of my hand, summoning a large flame in my palm, the noise dropped again almost instantly. "I am lucky enough to be blessed with extraordinary powers by our Moon Goddess, who is known to bless a member of my family only with magic like this throughout history. I am the first in a long time.
"Anthony Severin came onto my family's land when I was a baby with the intention of stealing our throne. He slaughtered my family and my people, but was caught out before he could claim the crown. Your people, the people of Dusk Light, inherited the land and its throne, and have been protecting it ever since, for which I am eternally grateful.
"I was found as a baby on the border of Silver Moon, where my mother the late Queen dropped me when she fled from our home. I was taken in by their pack, raised as a slave by those who didn't know better. It was only when I discovered James as my true mate that I was able to follow the clues to discover my real identity. We have vanquished the threat to our people, and would like to assure you that you are no longer in danger; you may return to your homes without fear, knowing you will never have to worry again."
James squeezed my hand, and I squeezed it back.
"This land and this pack that we call Dusk Light is no more," he announced. "We belong to the Midnight pack, the true royal pack that rule the werewolves, and Rhea Riverwood is our rightful Queen. All heil her majesty, the Queen of Midnight."
Everyone dropped to their knees quickly, stretching their arms out in front of them to bow to me. I turned quickly, seeing Terk, Emil, Soren and Violet following suit, and finally my eyes settled on James. He kissed my hand, bent down on one knee, and bowed his head to me as well. My eyes welled up as I looked around the room, seeing all these people swearing their fealty to me, a woman who hadn't been here more than two months. My heart sang.
"Please, rise to your feet," I called out, watching as everyone looked up and rose quietly, watching me with intent. "I will be a fair Queen, and a good Queen; I was raised as a slave, and I will not allow anyone to be treated how I was treated when I lived in Silver Moon. But there is one thing you must know." I took a deep breath, straightening my body before continuing. "I am not your Luna. I will never be your Luna. That is not who I am, who I was born to be. I am an Alpha. I am the Queen of the Alphas. And I will spend the rest of my life protecting you, my people, my family, from any harm that might befall you. Whatever problems you might have, whether big or small, I will support you. I will always be here to support you. I will not confine myself to the castle as a Luna does, and I will not be nothing but the royal babymaker. I am your protector. I am your Queen. And I am your Alpha. I hope you can accept me."
Everyone screamed. I began to laugh as I realized it was in joy, smiling as I saw my people jumping up and down with each other at the words I gave them. I bowed in respect, but continued to laugh as I turned back with James to face our advisors.
"Excellent speech, your Majesty," Violet teased. "Quite enticing. I've never seen anyone so excited for someone to steal the throne from James. Or, sorry, 'rightfully take' as James seemed to have stolen the throne from you in the first place."
James shoved at her playfully as I laughed again, brushing my hair behind my ears.
"I think you'll be the perfect ruler," Emil admitted, giving me a smile of respect. "We don't need a Luna. We need an Alpha. With the two of you looking after the new Midnight pack, nothing will ever go wrong again."
"That's very sweet Emil, thank you," I said with a smile.
"Yes, very sweet," James agreed, "but I think it's time we retire for the night and get washed up. The Queen is starting to smell like decomposing flesh."
I grimaced at his words. "I keep forgetting," I muttered, glancing at the people. "Did I really make that speech while I was covered in blood?"
"It just made you look ominous and scary," Terk shot back with a wink. "No one will ever betray you now."
"Okay, goodnight!" James called, grabbing my arm and dragging me away towards the doors to the hallway. "We will have a feast day tomorrow, to celebrate our victory!" he shouted right before we passed through the archway. The screaming and shouting intensified, if possible, and I laughed as I let my mate drag me through the hallway and towards our room.